Why is George Foreman rated so highly on a lot of peoples lists?

[BKM-]

How would you rate him in terms of head-to-head matchups?

Probably lower than in terms of accomplishments. He was flawed as a fighter, and there are more than a handfull of great Boxers that would probably Beat him, i also don't think he's invincible as a slugger. There have been Swarmers and Sluggers that could KO him, and one almost had: Lyle. Who ever would have thought that Lyle could almost ko a prime Foreman? Nobody, but he happened to get a chance to go toe to toe with Big George, and it showed a lot. Prime Foreman just hasn't had enough fights with Sluggers and Swarmers to be invincible in a slugfest. If he was a lot more skilled, and used his powerfull jab better, he would be very high on the list.

''Heart of Lion, The Heart of a Lion *points*'' I love it!

[butterfly1964]

I would pick foreman to beat every heavyweight from the pre 1960's era, and that includes joe louis too. Joe Louis wont try and box him, he's gonna go for the ko and get blasted, Name 1 guy louis beat thats half as good, walcott and schmeling would only be contenders like quarry, lyle and shavers had they fought in the 70's.

Who would you favor between Foreman and Sonny Liston?

[brownpimp88]

Who would you favor between Foreman and Sonny Liston.

i dont really know, liston hasnt been tested properly, beating a glass chinned floyd will not convince me. He could beat foreman, not sure. I think foreman hits harder but liston is more accurate. Trust me joe louis would lose though, joe's defense isnt too great and he isnt very cautious.

[butterfly1964]

i dont really know, liston hasnt been tested properly, beating a glass chinned floyd will not convince me. He could beat foreman, not sure. I think foreman hits harder but liston is more accurate. Trust me joe louis would lose though, joe's defense isnt too great and he isnt very cautious.

Liston was tested a lot more than Foreman, that's for sure. Liston was thrown to the wolves early in his career. He was fighting contenders when he only had 10 or so fights. Foreman only fought one or two top ten guys before fighting Frazier, while Liston completely cleaned out the division prior to fighting Patterson.

[brownpimp88]

Liston was tested a lot more than Foreman, that's for sure. Liston was thrown to the wolves early in his career. He was fighting contenders when he only had 10 or so fights. Foreman only fought one or two top ten guys before fighting Frazier, while Liston completely cleaned out the division prior to fighting Patterson.

dude the guy fought frazier and lyle, which top notch heavy hitters did liston truly beat.

[Southpaw Stinger]

dude the guy fought frazier and lyle, which top notch heavy hitters did liston truly beat.

cleveland Williams. Opponents of both said prime Williams hit harder than Liston.

[brownpimp88]

cleveland Williams. Opponents of both said prime Williams hit harder than Liston.

are you basically agreeing that liston has been tested more cuz IMO Sonny is an underachiever in boxing.

[Southpaw Stinger]

are you basically agreeing that liston has been tested more cuz IMO Sonny is an underachiever in boxing.

You asked - which top notch heavy hitter did liston truly beat - and I answered your question.

On whether Liston was tested more I have mixed feelings. I think on a whole Foreman definatly fought and beat the better opposition but if you look at their earlier careers I'd say Liston fought the better guys from the start.

[K-DOGG]

Sonny fought and beat some damn good fighters before Patterson finally gave him a shot against D'Matto's wishes. Cleveland Williams, Eddie Machen, and Zora Folley were all top-notch heavyweights in their primes by anyone's standards....and that's when Liston beat them.

Liston was far more tested by the time he fought Patterson than Foreman ever was on the way to his first clash with Frazier.

[Terry A]

A couple of random comments after reading this thread...
1. Rocky Marciano (5'10" 189lbs) vs George Foreman (6'3" 225) Does anybody really think that Marciano could really catch Foreman hard & flush BEFORE Foreman teed off on the oh so easy to hit Marciano? Foreman lifted a 205 lb Frazier off the ground, knocked Norton accross the ring, etc, etc. If Archie Moore rocked Rocky...well.
2. Foreman, in his autobiography, says he & Liston sparred alot. I would love to have seen those sessions. According to Foreman, they had mutual respect.
3. STYLES MAKE FIGHTS...Foreman, great as he was, would always have trouble with the likes of a Jimmy Young, Larry Holmes or Muhammad Ali while I think he would look overwelming against the likes of a Frazier, Marciano, or Tua-like fighters.